Article vending machine



Oct. 23, 1962 c. B. ALEXANDER 3,059,813

ARTICLE VENDING MACHINE Filed June 6, 1960 w. arllrlllpaipp 1.111; 1,111,111

2s II ELETUE J B QJEQJANDER 1FlEr. 3 Jay a.

t thee 3,659,813 Patented Get. 23, 1962 3,059,813 ARTICLE VENDING MACHINE Cletus B. Alexander, 709 Spring St., New Castle, Ind. Filed June 6, 1960, Ser. No. 33,994 1 Claim. (ill. 221-244) This invention relates to a machine for vending packages such as packages of paper or other similar articles which would be slidable from over the top of a stack of such articles, such for example as flat bars or cakes of soap. That is, the invention is not limited to any one precise article other than the article should be stacked one upon another in such manner that the topside of the stack may be available for a finger to slide thereover.

The primary purpose of the invention is to provide a device which is extremely simple, and yet most effective in vending articles, particularly packages of paper, not from the bottom of a stack, but from the top so that the vending operation will not be handicapped by the weight of an entire stack of articles resting on a bottom one.

A still further important object of the invention is to provide a structure which is extremely simple and low cost in manufacturing, and which will be substantially fool-proof and have a long life.

These and many other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those versed in the art in the following description of one particular form of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which FIG. 1 is a view in front elevation and partial section of a structure embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view in side elevation with the side wall broken away to disclose the inner construction.

FIG. 3 is a view in top plan and partial section;

FIG. 4 is a view in top plan in detail of an article moving finger;

FIG. 5 is a detail in section on the line 5-5 in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 6 is a detail in transverse, vertical section on the line 6-6 in FIG. 2.

A generally rectangular housing 10 is provided to have a slot 11 across its lower front end. Above the slot 11 is fixed a coin actuating mechanism 12, the details of which are not herein shown in view of the fact that this is a commercial item readily obtainable on the market. Sufiice it to say that it is actuated by dropping a coin into the slot 13 and then turning the handle 14 which, through the coin inserted, will rock a lever 15. The lever 15 rocks in a fore and aft direction.

A floor 16 is positioned above the housing floor 17 a distance so that the arm 15 will be between those two floors. This floor 16 extends between the side walls 18 and 19, being fixed thereto over supporting bars 16a, 16b, and 160 fixed to the front and the sides 18 and 19 respectively. This floor 16 extends rearwardly from the front side 20 a distance to receive thereon the articles to be vended herein designated by the numeral 21. In the present showing, these articles 21 consist of bundles of papers wherein the paper sheets are tied together in each separate bundle by an encircling band 21a, one band for each package extending in a fore and aft direction when the papers are stacked on the floor 16. In other words, the floor 16 constitutes a shelf which supports the articles to be vended. A pair of vertically disposed horizontally spaced apart guard members 22 and 23 are disposed vertically on the inside of the housing front 20 throughout the distance between the floor 16 and a top 29 of the housing 10. The packages of paper 21 are so stacked that their forward edges will be against the two guards 22 and 23 so that the forward edges of the packages will be spaced from the inside of the housing front 20 the thickness of these guards 22 and 23.

On the floor 17 of the housing 10 is disposed a channel member 24-, fixed to the floor with the side legs turned upwardly. There is a second channel 25 with legs turned upwardly spaced from the legs of the channel 24. This channel is fixed centrally, longitudinally of the channel 24, the legs of the channel 25 being shorter than those of the channel 24.

A rectangular post 26 is fixed by its lower end to a plate 50 near its rear end. The plate 50 is slidably carried to ride on the tops 51 of the channel 25 legs and between the legs 52 of the channel 24. The legs 52 have flanges 53 turned over the plate 50 to retain it in sliding contact with the tops 51. This mounting provides a minimum of friction upon travel of the plate 50. The post 26 may be secured to the plate 50 by extending through the plate from a shoulder 54 bearing on the plate, and having a head 55 on the underside of the post, riveted or spun over against the plate 50. The post 26 extends vertically upwardly within the housing 10 to have its upper end received between a pair of guide members 27 and 28 which extend substantially along the underside of the top 29 of the housing 10 from its rear to almost its forward side 20.

On the topside of the plate 50 is fixed an angle 30 from which extends upwardly a pair of spaced apart pins 31 and 32. These spaced apart pins 31 and 32 are located adjacent the forward side of the post 26.

A rocker bar 33 rests on a pedestal 34 fixed to the bottom floor 17 of the housing 10 to one side thereof, and extends across over the angle 30 and between the pins 31 and 32. A connecting link 35 is rockably fixed by a bolt 35a to a lower end of the arm 15 and extends rearwardly to rockably engage the rocker member 33 by any suitable means, herein shown as by a pivot bolt 36.

A resilient tongue 37, FIGS. 2 and 4, is formed to be cross-sectionally generally rectangular in shape, and has in one end a rectangular hole 38 therethrough of that size which will permit the reception therethrough of the post 26 so that the finger may be free to slide up and down the post. The opposite end of the finger 37 is provided with a short downturned lip 39. This finger is thus mounted on the post 26 and rests by its finger 39 on the top of the stack of packages 21. The length of the finger 37 is such that the finger 37 may be carried to the right, that is forwardly of the housing, to allow the lip 39 to drop down over the forward edge of the uppermost package 21 when the post 26 is shifted forwardly and before it comes into contact with the rear sides of the packages in the stack. The vertical height of the lip 39 is made to be slightly less than the vertical thickness of any one of the packages 21 so that when the lip 39 drops down over the forward end of that uppermost package, it will not come into contact with the next below package.

Behind the floor 16 in the space between its rear end and the back 40 of the housing 111, are a pair of slides 41 and 42. These slides are secured to the upper end of the housing back 40 and slope downwardly rather steeply and around in spaced relation from the back end of the floor 16 and thereunder down to the bottom floor 17 at the bottom of the slot 11. That is, there is a long sweeping curve in each of these slides 41 and 42 to the bottom of the slot. These two slides 41 and 42 are spaced apart so that the post 26 may travel therebetween.

In operation, when the handle 14 may be turned by the insertion of a coin in the slot 13, the arm 15 may be rocked by its lower end forwardly toward the housing front 20, in turn pulling the connecting rod or bar 35 forwardly, this travel of the bar 35 rocking the rocker arm 33 forwardly, and in turn pulling the plate 50 forwardly, with the result that the post 26 is shifted forwardly in its vertically maintained alignment to then carry the finger 37 over the top, uppermost package 21 and allow the lip 39 to drop down over the front edge of the package, and then upon release of the handle 14, a spring (not shown) in the coin actuating mechanism 12 returns the rocker arm 33 to the position indicated in FIG. 3. Upon the return of the finger 37 under that return travel of the post 26 the uppermost package 21 will have been pulled back and over the corner of the stack until it is overbalanced, and will then drop down by gravity onto the two slides 41 and 42, and due to the steep slope of those slides, this package which has been pulled from off the top will travel down those slides and out through the slot 11. Preferably a short tray 43 is provided as an extension from the slot 11 with an upturned lip 44 therealong to serve as a stop for the paper so that it may be picked upwardly therefrom after being dispensed as indicated. Preferably there is a brace in the nature of an angle 45 fixed to the topside of the finger 37 so that any tendency to bend it upwardly will be resisted by the vertically disposed leg 46, FIG. 2. In other words there is a little tension exerted at all times by the weight of the finger 37 against the top of the stack of papers 21. As the packages 21 are dispensed, the finger 37 drops downwardly theretoward onto the next below package under the influence of gravity.

When the goods to be dispensed are not completely wrapped as in the present example of packaged paper, that is, a discrete number of sheets of paper held within one band 21a in each package to be vended, the band 21a is disposed on each package as indicated in FIG. 3 to be traversed by the finger 37. In this manner the lip 39 of the finger 37 will drop down from the topside of the band 21a and be retracted against the vertically disposed portion of the band rather than engage against edges of the sheets themselves. In this arrangement sheets are not torn, and the individual package is moved as a unit.

While I have herein shown and described my invention in the one particular form, the simplest form now known to me, I do not desire to be limited to that precise form beyond the limitations which may be imposed by the following claim in view of the fact that structure changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

A machine for dispensing bound bundles of paper from the top of a stack, comprising a cabinet having back, side, and front walls, and a floor, the front wall having a bundle discharge slot thereacross;

a shelf spaced above said floor, fixed between said side walls, and spaced from the back wall;

a pair of laterally spaced apart slides extending from said back wall, spaced rearwardly of said shelf, and sloping in spaced relation under said shelf to said front wall slot;

guide means carried by said floor under said slides;

a member constrained by said guide means to fore and aft travel therealong;

a post rigidly aflixed to said member and extending vertically upwardly, rearwardly of said shelf and centrally between said slides;

a coin controlled leverage system shifting said mem her along said guide means;

an elastic tongue by one end portion engaging said post to slide vertically therealong, and by the other end portion extending over said shelf over bundles thereon;

a downturned lip on said tongue other end portion, said lip having a vertical height less than that of one of said bundles; and

aligning means within the cabinet, adjacent said front wall and extending upwardly, from said shelf, against which aligning means said bundles are stacked and aligned to be spaced from the grant wall, providing clearance of said tongue to drop over the front top edge of a bundle, between the bundle and the front wall;

said leverage system shifting said post forwardly to drag said finger lip over the front edge of an uppermost bundle held against forward movement by said aligning means, and upon rearward travel, dragging back that uppermost bundle until it tips over the rear edge of the next below bundle and drops from under said finger downwardly onto said slides and slides to said slot.

References (Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,277,568 Giardi Sept. 3, 1918 1,284,597 Clinchy Nov. 12, 1918 1,763,857 Ostrander June 17, 1930 1,946,183 Williamson Feb. 6, 1934 2,180,326 Traversy Nov. 14, 1939 2,501,970 Sawitzke Mar. 28, 1950 2,819,817 MacKenzie et al. Jan. 14, 1958 

